Sure, we’ve seen paper cut art before (here and here and here), and we’re very fond of it, by the way. But we’ve never seen anything quite like this. London-based artist/photographer Rich McCor (otherwise known as @paperboyo) brilliantly pairs his paper cut skills with his keen eye for photography. And the results are clever, playful and unexpected. McCor’s carefully crafted silhouettes are brought to life against sometimes familiar and iconic backdrops. While his work may seem simple in concept, there’s no doubt in our minds that these smart compositions require much more skill than one may think. Needless to say, we are thoroughly impressed and inspired. And his growing base of 175,000 Instagram followers would surely agree.

We’ve all been there before… a dreaded lecture, and one’s mind starts to wander as pencil meets paper to create some nonsensical drawing. Doodling is a favorite pastime of bored students the world over. But when elevated to this level of artistry, we sit up and take notice. Japanese artist Keita Sagaki’s prolific body of (rather time consuming) work is really impressive. Sagaki juxtaposes recreations of well-known fine art pieces with what would otherwise be considered notebook doodles. From a distance these large-scale works (often several feet in length) bear a striking resemblance to such masterpieces as the Mona Lisa, The Great Wave off Kanagawa, and The Last Supper. But upon closer examination, they are actually densely hand-drawn improvised doodles. Sagaki has even been commissioned to apply his unique method of art making to create famous landmarks from around the world. Just amazing.

Accomplished Singapore-based art director/designer Thomas Yang has two passions in life: design and cycling. Yang merges the two (quite expertly, we might add) by way of this ongoing collection of limited edition cycling-related prints, aptly titled 100copies (sold here). You don’t have to be an avid cyclist to appreciate this brilliant work from Yang. His process involves a strategic use of bicycle tires as stamps, essentially creating bold renderings of architectural landmarks from around the world. So far, Yang has produced four different architectural designs — “The Cyclist’s Empire” (Empire State Building), “God Save the Bike” (Tower Bridge), “Bicycle Mon Amour” (Eiffel Tower) and “The Unforbidden Cyclist” (the Forbidden City) — among other items, like posters, tees, stickers and tote bags. We’re looking forward to seeing what Yang comes up with next.

UK design studio Design By House took a rather unique approach when illustrating a series of landmarks, aptly titled “Landmarques”, from around the globe. Rather than resorting to the standard solid silhouette, DBH utilized a variety of layered shapes and colors to create a really effective and interesting take on each landmark. It’s amazing how even a suggestion of the form of such iconic structures immediately identifies them. We also love their choice of colors.